COVID-19 and Dentistry: Analysis of available information on a virtual platform. A descriptive and observational study

Abstract

Objective: to evaluate the information available on the Google search site concerning the relationship between dentistry and infection with the new coronavirus, and its concurrence with the current literature. Material and Methods: a descriptive and observational study conducted at a private university in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, using the Google search platform and the sites were analyzed through a previously prepared questionnaire. Results: the expressions “Coronavirus and dentistry”, “Oral health and Coronavirus” and “Tooth fracture and Coronavirus” searched produced 67 sites for analysis. Only 24.2% of the questions of the questionnaire were answered fully, while 62.5% did not answer them and 13.3% simply cited them without giving further clarification. Despite this, 99% of the contents were published by official entities, dental websites or articles assisted by oral health care professionals. Conclusion: although reliable, the search results presented little information that would really help a layperson understand the relationship between Coronavirus and dentistry, which demonstrates the need to create official channels to disseminate such information to the public, in an appropriate manner.